I was terrified I was going to break her or do it wrong. Watched three YouTube videos before I even tried. But honestly it's not that bad? I've definitely gotten faster and my wife says I do a good job. Small win but I'll take it. The meconium poop though, nobody warns you about that. That stuff is ...
Picked up a can of soda and told my daughter we should get it because the name was familiar, it said 7up. She just stared at me. My wife pretended not to know me. Why do they hate me like this?
Got the new smoker set up in the backyard yesterday. Doing a 12 hour brisket run this weekend and the family has no idea. Invited some neighbors over too. There's something about smoking meat that just makes life make sense you know?
Been planning this for 2 years and this weekend I'm actually starting it. Got the lumber yesterday and the kids are already hyped. My wife thinks I'm crazy for doing it solo but honestly how hard can it be? Wish me luck, I'll probably post an update if I don't fall out of a tree.
Decided to finally organize the garage and put up some wall mounted shelves. Drilled into a stud, thought I measured everything right, but once I got three shelves up I realized they weren't level at all. Had to take them all down and redo it. Took twice as long as planned and now I've got holes in ...
Every text turns into an argument about something. She twists my words, brings up old stuff, and it's just exhausting. Started using a co-parenting app to keep things neutral and documented but she won't use it. Should I just keep all communication in writing via email so there's a trail? We have tw...
Took the boys up to this lake my dad used to take me to as a kid. No cell service, no kids complaining about being bored after 5 minutes, just fishing, campfires, and bad jokes. Oldest caught his first fish. We played cards by lantern light. It was simple but also the most connected I've felt to my ...
Quit my overnight job 6 months ago and honestly it's been wild. For 8 years I was sleeping during the day, working nights, barely saw my kids awake. Now I'm at school pickups, help with homework, actually know what's going on in their lives. Miss the quiet nights and the extra money honestly. But se...
Been noticing some disrespect from younger guys at work and trying to figure out the right way to handle it. Don't want to be the angry old guy but also not going to let it slide. I think the key is staying calm, addressing it directly but respectfully, and not making a big deal out of it. Usually t...
Dad used to say that being a man means showing up, doing the work nobody else wants to do, and not complaining about it. I'm in my 40s now and married with kids and I finally get it. The unglamorous stuff like fixing the leaky faucet at 11pm, staying late at work without asking for credit, listening...
Work situation came up where I could've thrown a colleague under the bus to look better to the boss. Would've been easy money basically. Didn't do it. Told the truth about what actually happened even though it made me look bad in the moment. My boss respected it and actually the whole thing worked o...
Going through the separation made me realize how much my own parents' divorce affected me and how different I wanted to be. Had some real conversations with my dad about it and we're actually closer now. He validates how hard co-parenting is instead of just saying I should suck it up. I think he fin...
Got my new pellet grill set up and smoked brisket for 14 hours last Saturday. Came out absolutely perfect. The kids actually sat outside with me part of the time instead of being glued to screens and we just talked about life. Threw some burgers on for dinner after. Nothing fancy, just good food and...
That's terrible to say right? I have two kids and a mortgage but the job was destroying me. 60+ hour weeks, constant stress, and I was becoming someone my kids didn't recognize. I've got about 4 months of savings and I'm actually considering trying freelance work so I can have more flexibility. My w...
My 8 year old has figured out how to bypass the screen time warnings on his iPad. I set it to 1 hour a day and he just keeps clicking 'Ask for More Time' until I cave. Any apps or better solutions? I feel like I'm losing this battle and need reinforcements. Also worried he's picking up bad habits ea...